While the ATP Tour was dominated by Novak Dokovic and Carlos Alcaraz last season, the WTA Tour had a more open feel to it with all four Grand Slam prizes claimed by a different player.
Aryna Sabalenka lifted her maiden Grand Slam title at last year’s Australian Open before world number one Iga Swiatek maintained her clay-court dominance with victory at the French equivalent.
Marketa Vondrousova then made her breakthrough at Wimbledon before teenage sensation Coco Gauff did likewise in front of home support at the US Open.
Swiatek has threatened to take the women’s game by storm, winning three of the last seven Grand Slam singles titles, but the Pole has a poor record in Australia and can be vulnerable on this faster surface.
Last season’s finalists Sabalenka and Elena Rybakina, who also competed in the final of the Brisbane International earlier this month, are two serious title contenders, alongside the ever-improving Gauff, who kickstarted her season by claiming silverware in Auckland.
With there being seemingly no standout performer at Melbourne Park, it could pay to throw a few darts in what looks to be a wide-open tournament.
- Elena Rybakina to win
- Jessica Pegula each-way
- Jelena Ostapenko each-way
Rybakina Could Rule Melbourne Park
Of those at the head of the Australian Open women’s title betting, Rybakina looks the most convincing as she bids to overturn last season’s final defeat to Sabalenka.
Swiatek’s best run at the Australian Open was a semi-final effort in 2022, with her other four tournament appearances featuring three fourth-round exits as well as an early second-round elimination.
The Pole is clearly a contender but she is at her best on clay and looks short enough at 5/2. while reigning champion Sabalenka, for all her consistency at Grand Slam level, was blown away by Rybakina in their recent meeting at the Brisbane International.
Rybakina claimed that title with an impressive 6-0 6-3 victory, a performance highlighted by seven aces and only one break-point opportunity faced.
Prior to that, the classy Kazakh had recorded four more straight-sets successes, which included accounting for Elise Mertens and highly-touted teenager Linda Noskova.
Only one of the nine sets she contested in Brisbane saw her lose four games and that gives some sort of idea of how she is currently operating.
Rybakina has headed to Adelaide in a bid to build on that and the top seed, currently in the quarter-final, would see her Australian Open title odds crash if she were able to follow up.
When on-song, Rybakina is one of the strongest servers on the WTA Tour and the 24-year-old knows exactly what it takes to win a Grand Slam competition having triumphed at Wimbledon in 2022.
The third seed knows she has the measure of Sabalenka on recent form and, with Swiatek having a bit to prove given her strength in the betting, her chief threat may be Gauff.
The 19-year-old, who claimed her seventh career title at WTA Auckland last week, has the world at her feet and the athletic American is almost certain to at some point build on last season’s US Open success.
Consistent Pegula Has Ideal Conditions
Fifth seed Jessica Pegula has been beaten in the quarter-final of the Australian Open in each of the last three seasons and the American number two, playing second fiddle to Gauff, is capable of doing even better.
Five of her last eight Grand Slam appearances have resulted in quarter-final defeats - she has yet to overcome that hurdle - but her run to the WTA Finals final at the back end of last season should have fuelled her belief.
Pegula defeated Rybakina, Sabalenka, Maria Sakkari and Gauff in straight sets before bumping into Swiatek, highlighting her capabilities when armed with a quick, hard surface, and that was arguably a career-best tournament for her.
Now 29 years of age, excuses are wearing thin and, if she is to make her breakthrough in a Grand Slam, then early on in a campaign at Melbourne Park looks the most likely destination for her to achieve it.
Pegula is available at 16/1, which makes her of obvious each-way appeal given her consistency in the showpiece events.
Ostapenko Capable Of Going Deep
Those looking for an interest at bigger odds could do worse than side with the hard-hitting Jelena Ostapenko who, at her best, has the game to trouble any of the elite.
Those bright days have become few and far between but Ostapenko is a former Grand Slam champion, having sprung a surprise as a non-seeded 20-year-old at the French Open in 2017.
The Latvian has taken some time to live up to those expectations but she made the quarter-final in two of the four Grand Slams last season, which includes here in Australia.
Ostapenko has started the new campaign in decent touch, too, having made the quarter-final in Brisbane and repeating the trick in Adelaide, where she would be expected to overcome last-eight opponent Marta Kostyuk.
The world number 12 claimed the scalp of Karolina Pliskova in Brisbane, before losing in three sets to Victoria Azarenka, while she recorded an excellent win over Caroline Garcia in Adelaide.
That form alone gives her a decent chance of going deep and, with a bit of luck with the draw, she could even challenge for the title. There are certainly worse 50/1 shots to be had.
